Southlake Regional Health Centre in Newmarket implemented a system that is “making it faster for patients to register and check in for appointments, including out-patient tests, clinic visits and surgical procedures”.

Located in a designated high-growth area (York Region and South Simcoe – North of Toronto), Southlake is a 365 bed hospital that has seen a quadrupling in size over the past 10 years and handled approximately 600,000 visits in 2009. They implemented a new system last summer, and according to hospital staff “the system, which includes at-home pre-registration, as well as self-serve electronic kiosks and Welcome Centres on-site, is speeding up wait times by as much as 75 per-cent and saving the hospital as much as $400,000 annually”.

If you speak with our sales team, February was our busiest month yet in terms of presentations to hospital administrators and clinicians across Ontario and parts of the U.S. They have quickly become PowerPoint experts, and have built-up a few muscles along the way by moving our demo kiosk through long hallways, busy parking lots and narrow staircases.

This third and final part of our series on achieving shorter lines and fewer FTEs highlights the last three steps of our process redesign.

Step 3 – Organizational Realignment

The redesigned scheduling and registration flow will require positions and roles to change within your hospital. The goal is to re-centralize scheduling and registration (supported by self-service technology), and making these type of changes will require realignment of human resources and budget.

Technology can be your best friend when dealing with resource and time waste challenges at your hospital. Finding and implementing the right technology can deliver immediate benefits by improving workflows, automating routine activities, and interacting with existing systems within your hospital.

More than ever, hospitals are faced with increasing patient volumes and expectations, while having to work with tighter budgets. These new realities are driving hospitals to find ways to adapt, including the review of resources and streamlining processes.

The good news is that positive outcomes can be gained by using technology to improve scheduling and patient registration processes. Reviewing and enhancing these processes can:
• Improve patient satisfaction – easier access, less time to register, and self-service options
• Reduce manual input – fewer resources and fewer data errors
• Enhance staff satisfaction – shorter line ups and more rewarding tasks